Many LGBTQIA+ people face mental health difficulties. That's not because being LGBTQIA+ is bad for your mental health – it's because of minority stress.
The phrase "minority stress" was invented to describe the many different ways that living as a minority in society can create extra stress.
This concept was first invented to describe the experiences of gay men.
But it has since been extended to apply to other people who might be considered "minorities", too.
On this page, find out more about minority stress theory, where it came from, and how to cope if you're experiencing minority stress yourself.
What is minority stress?
The minority stress theory simply argues that living as a "minority" in society can create extra stress.
This is because as a minority, you may be more likely to face discrimination, harassment, stigma, prejudice, and/or rejection.
This stress can build up and lead to mental health problems, and sometimes physical health problems, too.
This means that LGBTQIA+ people like us might be more likely to struggle with their mental health – not because of who we are, but because of how society treats us.
This theory doesn't only apply to LGBTQIA+ people – anyone who exists as a marginalised person in society might experience it.
And intersectionality means that those who have multiple marginalised identities – for example, if you're an LGBTQIA+ person of colour – might experience it more.
What is intersectionality?
Intersectionality is all about recognising that we all have multiple, overlapping identities, which can mean we also have overlapping experiences of minority stress.
The concept was coined by the feminist law scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw in the late 1980s.
Crenshaw argued that Black women experience both racism and sexism – they exist at the intersection of the two.
This means that their experience is different to both that of Black men and white women, who might experience one but not the other.
Intersectionality is a helpful way of understanding that we all have multiple identities that make up who we are, and so may experience different kinds of minority stress at once.
Find out more about intersectionality from Womankind Worldwide.
Who came up with minority stress theory?
The "Minority Stress Model" was first popularised by Ilan Meyer in the 1990s.
Meyer published a report titled "Minority Stress and Mental Health in Gay Men".
The report described the chronic stress that can be caused by living in a hostile society, and linked this to mental health problems among gay men.
In the early 2000s, Meyer publicly thanked Winn Kelly Brooks for her formative work on lesbian mental health. Brooks actually used the term "minority stress" years before Meyer did, in her 1981 book Minority Stress and Lesbian Women.
Since the 1990s, many other researchers have built on and expanded the "Minority Stress Model" – applying it to other groups beyond gay men and lesbians.
For example, the researcher Annaliese Singh is an expert in minority stress and race.
And the researchers Monique Botha and David M. Frost have applied the model to explain poor mental health among autistic people.
Examples of minority stress
So, now you understand the academic theory – but you might be wondering what minority stress actually looks like when it shows up in your life.
Here are some real-world examples of what we're talking about, split into the two different types of minority stress: distal and proximal.
"Distal" refers to external events: things that happen to you in society because of who you are.
"Proximal" describes internal stressors: thoughts, feelings, and ideas about yourself that you might have internalised.
Below are some examples of each type. These might feel upsetting to read – notice what it brings up for you, and feel free to take a break from reading this page if it feels like too much right now.
"Distal" (external) minority stress
Here are some (external) examples of minority stress:
- Your co-worker starts treating you differently after you come out as gay.
- As a trans person, when you go to the doctor about any symptom, they always end up focusing on the fact you're trans.
- Someone points or shouts at you when you're holding hands with your partner in the street.
- As a non-binary person, you can't get legal documents that reflect your gender – you have to use "M" or "F".
"Proximal" (internal) minority stress
Here are some (internal) examples of minority stress:
- You feel a sense of shame or embarrassment when being affectionate with your partner in public.
- You find yourself feeling "on edge" or hypervigilant often.
- You judge other members of the LGBTQ+ community or feel uncomfortable around them.
- You hide who you really are from the people around you.
Find out more about distal and proximal stressors from MindOut.
How minority stress impacts LGBTQ+ mental health
Experiencing any of the things listed on this page, or any other kinds of discrimination or prejudice, on a regular basis, can create chronic stress.
This chronic stress is thought to contribute to higher levels of anxiety, depression, and other problems.
Research has shown that queer people are more likely to have mental health problems than straight people.
Trans and gender-diverse people have also been shown to have poorer mental health and wellbeing.
It's worth repeating that being queer or trans is not what necessarily creates mental health problems – instead, we're affected by the stress of being queer or trans in a non-accepting environment.
How to cope with minority stress
Minority stress affects us all differently – and how you cope with that stress is unique to you, too.
Many LGBTQIA+ people find that it can be helpful to:
- Find like-minded community. Whenever we can connect with other LGBTQIA+ folks, whether online or off, we have an opportunity to share our experiences with others who may understand.
- Practice self-care and self-compassion. You deserve gentleness, particularly in a world that is sometimes not gentle with you.
- Get LGBTQ+ affirmative mental health support. It's important for those of us who experience minority stress to get support from people and organisations that actually understand this stress, and how it affects us.
Getting LGBTQ+ friendly support for mental health issues
LGBTQ+ friendly mental health support is support that doesn't just treat your mental health as though it is separate from your experiences as a queer or trans person.
And it's support that will never pathologise you or make you feel bad about being who you are.
We need therapists who are able to understand that our mental wellbeing is connected to our experiences as LGBTQ+ people in the world.
Read more about what LGBTQ+ affirmative support is, and how to find it.
Get support for LGBTQ+ mental wellbeing with Voda
Voda is the mental wellbeing app that truly understands the impact that minority stress has on LGBTQIA+ people.
That's because it's built by queer and trans therapists, for queer and trans people.
We know from experience that mental wellbeing can't be separated from the reality of the world we live in. You deserve support that recognises that too.
